Top Startup and Tech Funding News – February 3, 2025

It’s Tuesday, February 3, 2026, and we’re back with today’s top startup and tech funding news. Today’s deals highlight investor confidence in autonomous mobility, fintech infrastructure, gaming, and AI-native enterprise platforms. With automation spreading across physical systems and digital workflows, startups building defensible platforms are securing large-scale backing across all stages.

Late-stage and strategic rounds drove major moves in autonomous vehicles, AI-powered aviation, and digital banking. Waymo landed a historic $16 billion to extend its global robotaxi lead, while Skyryse secured $300 million to scale its FAA-certified aviation OS. Neo Financial raised $68.5 million to launch a novel credit securitization model, and Kindred netted $125 million to expand its peer-to-peer home exchange platform.

Early- and mid-stage rounds focused on infrastructure, security, and sector-specific automation. Ares Interactive launched with $70 million to build AI-driven game franchises. Gruve raised $50 million to address AI’s power bottleneck in data centers, while Automata and Artificial Labs each secured $45 million to modernize biotech labs and insurance underwriting, respectively. Alaffia Health raised $55 million to scale AI-led claims processing, and RapidFort captured $42 million to harden software supply chains in real time.

Tech Funding News

Funding Highlights

• Waymo secures $16B late-stage round to expand global robotaxi network
• Skyryse raises $300M Series C to bring AI copilots to commercial flight
• Kindred closes $125M Series B and C to scale trusted home-swapping travel
• Neo Financial raises $68.5M Series D2 for credit securitization and growth
• Ares Interactive nets $70M Series A to launch AI-native game studios
• Alaffia Health raises $55M Series B to automate health insurance claims
• Gruve raises $50M Series A to scale distributed data center infrastructure
• Automata raises $45M Series C to accelerate lab automation in biotech
• Artificial Labs raises $45M Series B to digitize commercial insurance workflows
• RapidFort raises $42M Series A to secure software supply chains with AI

Investor Activity

Today’s rounds drew leading institutional VCs, strategic corporates, and government-aligned investors. Notable participants included Alphabet, Andreessen Horowitz, Fidelity, Temasek’s Xora Innovation, and Danaher. From digital aviation to fintech platforms, investors backed platforms that automate risk, unlock scale, and enable AI-native operations. Here’s the full breakdown of February 3’s most significant startup and tech fundings.

Waymo raises $16B in funding to accelerate robotaxi expansion

Alphabet’s self-driving unit Waymo has secured a massive $16 billion funding round at a $126 billion valuation. This late-stage infusion more than doubles Waymo’s valuation since 2024 and marks one of the largest autonomous vehicle investments on record. The capital will fuel Waymo’s aggressive robotaxi rollout into new U.S. cities and its first international market, London, as the company scales up driverless ride-hailing operations.

The funding underscores surging investor confidence that autonomous ride services are moving from R&D into a high-growth commercial phase. Waymo remains the only operator running fully driverless taxis at scale, logging 15 million rides in 2025 – a lead this funding aims to extend.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Waymo (Mountain View, CA – Autonomous Vehicles)

• Investors: Alphabet (lead); participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, Dragoneer, DST Global, Fidelity and others.

• Amount Raised: $16 billion

• Total Raised: ~$26 billion (estimated)

• Funding Stage: Series D (Late-stage)

• Funding Date: Feb 3, 2026

Skyryse raises $300M in Series C funding for autonomous flight systems

Skyryse, an aviation automation startup, has closed a $300 million Series C round at a $1.15 billion valuation, propelling it to unicorn status. Based in California, Skyryse develops SkyOS, a universal flight control operating system that simplifies aircraft piloting through software. The fresh capital will support FAA certification and scaling of SkyOS across helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft.

Skyryse’s technology – already demonstrated in Black Hawk helicopters – aims to reduce pilot workload and improve safety by automating complex flight maneuvers. The sizable round reflects a growing appetite for autonomous flight systems as the commercial and defense sectors seek to cut costs and address pilot shortages through technology. Skyryse’s progress signals that “fly-by-software” solutions are nearing mainstream deployment in aviation.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Skyryse (El Segundo, CA – Aviation Automation)

• Investors: Autopilot Ventures (lead); Fidelity Management, Qatar Investment Authority, ArrowMark Partners, and others.

• Amount Raised: $300 million

• Total Raised: ~$730 million

• Funding Stage: Series C

• Funding Date: Feb 3, 2026

Kindred lands $125M in funding to scale home-swapping travel platform

San Francisco-based Kindred has secured $125 million in new funding to expand its members-only home-swapping network. The raise is split across a $40M Series B (co-led by NEA and Figma co-founder Dylan Field) and an $85M Series C led by Index Ventures. Kindred’s platform lets travelers swap homes with trusted networks of friends-of-friends, offering a community-driven alternative to hotels and short-term rentals.

The fresh capital comes amid surging demand for affordable travel options: Kindred’s membership doubled to nearly 300,000 across 150+ cities last year as users embrace swapping to save on lodging. With this funding, Kindred plans to enhance its product and safety features and foster more sub-communities, signaling that peer-to-peer home exchange is entering the mainstream of travel.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Kindred (San Francisco, CA – Travel/Home Swapping)

• Investors: NEA and Figma’s Dylan Field (Series B co-leads); Index Ventures (Series C lead); with participation from existing backers.

• Amount Raised: $125 million (Series B + Series C)

• Total Raised: ~$132 million

• Funding Stage: Series B and Series C

• Funding Date: Feb 3, 2026

Neo Financial raises $68.5M in Series D2 funding to expand AI-driven banking

Canadian fintech Neo Financial has closed a $68.5 million Series D2 round to fuel its next phase of growth. Calgary-based Neo offers a digital banking platform and credit card products for consumers, and it’s now leveraging an AI-powered credit modeling and securitization strategy to scale lending. The oversubscribed financing was led by a broad syndicate of 100+ Canadian founders and institutional investors, including Alberta’s AIMCo, Northleaf Capital, and others, signaling strong domestic support.

Neo will use the funds to launch an inaugural securitization program, freeing up capital to expand its loan book into the billions. By adopting a model common at major banks (packaging credit assets for investors), Neo aims to grow without being constrained by equity capital. This approach, backed by significant new funding, positions Neo to challenge Canada’s financial incumbents with innovative, scalable fintech offerings.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Neo Financial (Calgary, Canada – Fintech/Banking)

• Investors: A syndicate of 100+ Canadian investors led the round (including Alberta Investment Management Corp., Northleaf Capital, Plaza Ventures, and prominent entrepreneurs).

• Amount Raised: $68.5 million

• Total Raised: $700+ million

• Funding Stage: Series D2 (Growth stage)

• Funding Date: Feb 3, 2026

Ares Interactive raises $70M in Series A funding for AI-driven game franchises

Ares Interactive, a new game development studio, has raised $70 million in one of the largest Series A rounds for a gaming startup in recent years. The San Francisco-based company is building a next-generation, cross-platform game publisher focused on free-to-play franchises. The funding was led by General Catalyst with participation from gaming veteran Niccolo de Masi. Ares operates studios in California and Berlin, pairing industry veterans with AI-enabled development and live-ops tools to iterate rapidly based on player feedback.

The early-stage bet on Ares reflects confidence in its experienced leadership (ex-Apple, Kabam, and Glu Mobile executives) and its strategy to leverage AI workflows to scale content. As many game studios face pullbacks, Ares is now capitalizing on this to “lean in” and create the kind of enduring, community-driven game experiences that keep players engaged for years.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Ares Interactive (San Francisco, CA – Gaming/AI)

• Investors: General Catalyst (lead); Niccolo de Masi (Executive Chairman) and other angel backers.

• Amount Raised: $70 million

• Total Raised: $70 million

• Funding Stage: Series A

• Funding Date: Feb 3, 2026

Alaffia Health raises $55M in Series B funding to automate health insurance claims

New York-based Alaffia Health has raised $55 million in Series B funding to scale its AI-powered health insurance claims platform. Alaffia’s software helps insurers automate claims review and detect billing waste or errors, reducing unnecessary payouts. Founded in 2020, the company has quickly gained traction with health plans looking to curb costs. The round was led by Transformation Capital and brings Alaffia’s total funding to $71.6 million.

With the new capital, Alaffia plans to grow its engineering and data science teams and expand its client base among insurers. Why it matters: U.S. healthcare spending topped $4 trillion, and payers are eager for tech solutions like Alaffia’s to improve efficiency. By using agentic AI to flag irregularities in real time, Alaffia aims to save insurers money and speed up claims processing – a value proposition this significant funding will help it deliver at scale.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Alaffia Health (New York, NY – HealthTech/InsurTech)

• Investors: Transformation Capital (lead); participation from existing investors.

• Amount Raised: $55 million

• Total Raised: $71.6 million

• Funding Stage: Series B

• Funding Date: Feb 3, 2026

Gruve raises $50M in Series A funding to address AI’s data center power crunch

Infrastructure startup Gruve has raised $50 million in a Series A follow-on round to scale its novel approach to AI computing power. Founded in 2024, Gruve aggregates “stranded” capacity from data centers – tapping into unused electrical power and space across facilities in major cities – and makes it available for running AI models. As the focus in AI shifts from training to energy-intensive inference, Gruve’s model helps close the “power gap” by stitching together underutilized data center resources into a virtual, on-demand network.

The latest funding, led by Xora Innovation (Temasek’s venture arm) with participation from Mayfield, Cisco Investments, and others, brings Gruve’s total financing to $87.5M. The capital will enable Gruve to secure more data center partnerships and invest in engineering talent as it expands its 500+ MW capacity footprint. By unlocking cheaper, distributed power for AI workloads, Gruve addresses what its CEO calls “AI’s biggest problem” – the scarcity of affordable power – positioning the company as a key player in the AI infrastructure boom.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Gruve (San Jose, CA – AI Infrastructure)

• Investors: Xora Innovation (lead, backed by Temasek); Mayfield, Cisco Investments, Acclimate Ventures, AI Space and others.

• Amount Raised: $50 million

• Total Raised: $87.5 million

• Funding Stage: Series A (extension)

• Funding Date: Feb 3, 2026

Automata lands $45M in Series C funding for AI-ready lab automation

London-based Automata has secured a $45 million Series C round to advance its lab automation platform for the life sciences. The funding was led by Dimension, joined by strategic investor Danaher Corporation (via Danaher Ventures) and other backers. Automata’s technology turns traditional wet laboratories into autonomous, AI-ready labs by combining modular robotics, orchestration software, and unified data systems. Its platform allows pharmaceutical and biotech researchers to automate repetitive experiments and link directly with AI models – effectively building an operating system for physical lab work.

Automata already counts five top pharma companies among its customers and has been involved in large-scale automation projects, including support for NHS diagnostic labs. With the new capital and a partnership with Danaher’s life sciences tools business, Automata plans to scale deployments globally and accelerate the development of its closed-loop experimentation software. This investment highlights the growing convergence of AI and laboratory science, as the industry seeks to boost R&D throughput with automation.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Automata (London, UK – Lab Automation)

• Investors: Dimension (lead); Danaher Ventures (strategic partner), Tru Arrow Partners, Octopus Ventures, Entrepreneurs First, among others.

• Amount Raised: $45 million

• Total Raised: ~$100 million

• Funding Stage: Series C

• Funding Date: Feb 3, 2026

Artificial Labs raises $45M in Series B funding to modernize insurance underwriting

Artificial Labs, a London-based insurtech startup, has raised $45 million in Series B funding to expand its digital underwriting platform for specialty insurance markets. Artificial’s software helps insurance brokers and carriers automate complex commercial insurance processes – from quoting to policy binding – by replacing legacy, paper-driven workflows with an AI-enabled digital platform. The Series B round was led by CommerzVentures, with participation from Move Capital and existing investors, including Augmentum Fintech.

With this funding, Artificial plans to double its headcount over the next year and establish a presence in the U.S. market while reinforcing its leadership in London’s insurance hub. The funding further shows the momentum in insurtech: even in a traditionally conservative industry, large insurers are adopting modern software to boost efficiency. Artificial’s growth and new capital show that bringing underwriting into the digital age – with data-driven, automated decision tools – continues to attract significant investor support.

Funding Details:

• Startup: Artificial Labs (London, UK – Insurance Software)

• Investors: CommerzVentures (lead); Move Capital Fund I and existing backers Augmentum Fintech, 6 Degrees, FOM, and TrueSight Ventures.

• Amount Raised: $45 million

• Total Raised: ~$76 million

• Funding Stage: Series B

• Funding Date: Feb 3, 2026

RapidFort raises $42M in Series A funding to automate software supply chain security

Cybersecurity startup RapidFort has raised a $42 million in Series A funding to help organizations eliminate software vulnerabilities at machine speed. Based in San Francisco, RapidFort’s platform uses automation and AI to continuously identify and remove security flaws in software components before they reach production. The round was co-led by Blue Cloud Ventures and Forgepoint Capital, with participation from Felicis Ventures, Alumni Ventures, and others. RapidFort addresses a pressing issue: as development cycles accelerate and attacks occur faster, traditional patch-and-scan approaches can’t keep up.

The startup’s technology instead proactively “hardens” container images and software artifacts, stripping out unused code and applying fixes on the fly. This funding will be used to expand RapidFort’s sales and engineering teams and to deepen its platform capabilities for enterprise customers. Investor interest signals a broader shift in cybersecurity toward proactive defense, as companies seek tools not just to find bugs but to neutralize them continuously in an AI-fueled threat landscape.

Funding Details:

• Startup: RapidFort (San Francisco, CA – Cybersecurity)

• Investors: Blue Cloud Ventures and Forgepoint Capital (co-leads); Felicis Ventures, Boulder Ventures, Evolution VC, Gaingels, Alumni Ventures, and others.

• Amount Raised: $42 million

• Total Raised: ~$50 million

• Funding Stage: Series A

• Funding Date: Feb 3, 2026

Tech Funding Summary – February 3, 2026